Introduction
This week’s test turns on one simple question: would you buy a 9-litre 32-tonne tipper now or, more importantly, in two years’ time? If you answered ‘No’, then jump ahead to page 46 now, as there’s clearly no point in reading any further. However, if you said ‘Yes’, or particularly ‘Maybe’, then stick with us.
It seems strange to be offering an eight-legger nowadays without the almost obligatory ‘industry standard’ 12-litre lump. But that’s exactly what Volvo is doing by selling the FM9.380 alongside its bigger FM12 brother, and it’s clearly an acquired taste.
Product Profile
For every FM9 8x4 Volvo currently sells it shifts three FM12’s. However, if you’re a brick and block carrier, or a mixer, tanker of bulker operator looking for maximum payloads (and a rear-mounted PTO) then the smaller-engined FM9 has a kerbweight advantage, albeit only some 250kg.
And what about residuals? A smaller-capacity engine might seem like a good deal now (an FM9.380- is £4,245 less than the equivalent FM12), but five years and 300,000km later it won’t stir the juices like a 12-litre. Let’s face it, if there was a big demand for sub-10 litre eight-wheelers Iveco would sell a lot more Cursor 8 Euro Trakkers and ERF would still be offering an 8x4 with a Cummins C-Series.
So can a little good’un beat a big good’un? To find out we hit the road with an FM9 8x4 featuring the most powerful 380hp rating (costing an extra £3698) and a 14m3 Charlton Superlite steel body that’s tough enough to handle muckaway work but light enough not to be completely embarrassed by alloy rivals when hauling aggregates.
Productivity
Hmm…after all the good news this is definitely a tough call. The Volvo’s consumption was clearly not the best we’ve encountered, although there’s strong mitigation – or, to be more precise, there were strong winds which hammered our test truck throughout the two-day test. Getting held up on more than our fair share of roundabouts on the A-road section, and by slow-moving fuel tankers and roadworks, didn’t help either. Faster diffs might have come in handy on the motorway, but you can only get them in the CTEV87 bogie with a welded casing, and they probably wouldn’t have helped gradeability.
So we must assume the FM9.380’s overall 7.01mpg is a one-off result. On the motorway, at least, it isn’t that far adrift from the pack. However, we’ve no complaints about the FM9’s running times, especially on A-roads, which proves how well it goes with the flow. Finally, if you’re buying an FM9 for maximum payloads, you’re not going to spec a steel body, as on our demo, which explains its rather hefty tare of 12,160kg fully fuelled and with a driver on board.
CW Knight is a fourth-generation family business that began trading in 1886. The present incumbent, David Knight, runs a fleet of 12 bulk tippers out of Fenny Compton, Warwickshire, delivering sand and gravel to the surrounding areas. IN recent years he has operated a mix of Scania, Daf, Foden, Mercedes and Renault trucks but has now settled on an all-Volvo fleet. “I have been impressed by other makes, which in some cases may be better for some jobs, but I just like the Volvo package best,” he says. “The FM9 is not really suited for our operation; the high chassis and steel body is aimed at construction or muckaway work.
“Working out of quarries we don’t need the extra ground clearance; instead we want to maximize payload. Our FM12.340’s, equipped with Clearspan roll-over sheeting and alloy bodies, gave us 20.5 tonnes and the FM9 would need to match that and our fleet average of 8.3mpg. We choose to use front-end hydraulics – under-floor systems have too many moving parts. They may be a bit more stable but that can encourage drivers to top at more dangerous angles. With drivers in mind air conditioning has to be there but we have a concern about how much fuel it consumes. Reversing cameras are a recent addition but most quarries now stipulate them, along with sheeting systems operated from ground level.”
